


Just Imagine...

by Coded_Kitty



Category: No Fandom
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-18
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-01-06 03:09:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18379721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coded_Kitty/pseuds/Coded_Kitty
Summary: Tyr started life just like anyone else. He went to school, grew up in a place with no advantages, and hung out with other kids his age. When he turned 15 though, he finally learned what his magic was. Then the Division found out and took him away. All of Magix hated him now and Topia was already against magixians. What could he do to get at least one friend?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First story here, kinda anxious about it but if I don't do it, it'll never happen so uh yeah. Enjoy?

Imagine a world in which anything was possible, a world where magic was in the cracks of the sidewalk and there really were figures in the shadows. Picture a place where it isn’t awkward to suddenly be under a child, a place where anyone can learn anything and be anything they want. Now, give it a name. Something that reflects the creative freedom of the world. Create islands in the watery world and give it life. One more thing before you finish up and freely create on your world, just one question about this world: Why did you create the world this way? It isn’t going to stay that way, the beings have free will so they’ll ruin it all, won’t they?

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr woke up with start, finding himself sitting up with sweat dripping down his brow. He rubbed his eyes and leaned against the corner of the room, hugging himself after a while. Tyr couldn’t quite remember his dream that well but he was fully aware of how likely it was to occur. His dreams and nightmares were rarely a work of fiction, unfortunately.

He looked around the room, trying to calm himself down as he shook silently. 

His bed was pushed to the opposite corner he was in, something he usually slept in but rarely woke up in. He didn’t use it last night though, having had a bad feeling about it after the small party he had before heading to bed. His bed was, because of this, still made and looking rather cozy. It had the blankets his mother made over sheets softer than velvet. No one else seemed to know what that meant but that was alright, velvet was a coveted material these days.

His dresser was comfortingly hidden in the closet, his method of reminding himself that nothing but clothes were in the closet ever since he’d had a nightmare about being dragged through by his ankles into a world that felt so wrong. The closeted dresser was a bright blue dulled by the shadow of age, looking closer to white or gray.

The walls of the room were a similar color as his dresser,  **Painted** that way on purpose as though to make it feel like Tyr was flying all the time. It was much better than actually flying in his opinion.

There was a box fan attached to the ceiling, held by Tyr’s mother’s  **Bind** . He wished that was his ability but he got stuck with…

Tyr shook his head, he was supposed to be calming down, not aggravating himself. That wouldn’t do anyone any good. The mess from last time was awful and there were still remnants of it even though he’d fixed everything.

He watched the fan wobble from side to side as it kept the room at the set temperature, having worked well for almost as long as Tyr needed it too. It was such a soothing movement especially as the three colors on it blended together this way.

Tyr glanced at the table in the middle of his room, the only thing that seemed out of place. It was a dark color and had a few golden swirls in the legs. It had several drawers that were barely big enough to hold a deck in each which was fine, he only had to keep one deck apart from the others. It was the only one that actually worked for Tyr. The others were for friends who came over more than they should. His deck wasn’t in the drawer, it hadn’t been for weeks. The last reading had startled him and it seemed wrong to put it away yet. The cards were still turned up as though a madman had tried it. Cards were slightly scattered across the only clean surface in the room, cards that were pristine despite being as old as Tyr and just as used. No one got to see his cards, even though he always had them out and people over. People’s eyes seemed to gloss over them. It was a sign of his magic.

He curled more into the warm corner he’d been in all night despite having remembered falling asleep in his bed. His bed was soft and almost calling to him, it was nice to know he had one. His friends often came over and complained about how uncomfortable the government-issued sleeping pads were. He could remember life before he was proven to be “useful” for the same place that gave so many nothing but trouble. Tyr always felt conflicted about it all.

Tyr rubbed the sides of his head, that wasn’t important at the moment. He stood up and leaned against the wall more, slowly wandering over to the table. He ran his finger over the smooth feeling of the cards that only moved when he wanted them to. He remembered the first time he had seen a card reading. That was his magic after all. He learned what it was on accident and never told anyone. He couldn’t because he wouldn’t be allowed in Magix anymore. He couldn’t risk it. It was too dangerous.

The card the faced him sent a shiver through his hand as they made contact. Tyr knew what that meant. A visitor. He’d deal with everything else after they left. It was a simple business, he already knew what was going to happen. It happened every week. He could do nothing but answer the door to his one-room home. It was more than others in Magix had but it still wasn’t as much as what the poorest member of Topia had. They all had at least three bedroom apartments.

Tyr opened the baby blue door to reveal a couple of men wearing big coats to hide their identities and the view of the nice but poor view of the community he lived in.

Nothing was said as Tyr let them in and hung their coats with a slight hand movement. They hadn’t offered their warmer wear, looking around in search of Tyr who was suddenly by the table and shifting it slightly more to one side. The men looked at each other with wide eyes, clearly people of the middle class of Topia. Magic was as foreign to them as money was to Tyr.

“Welcome, I hope you’re able to find comfort in these four walls during your visit,” Tyr broke the silence, addressing the men while keeping his own long sleeve shirt on. The glow of the markings on his body showed through despite any attempt to hide them. “May I ask why you come?” Tyr asked on formality since it was obvious why they’d come.

“You already know, why ask?” Tyr admired the first of the two to speak up, brave words for someone who had the same amount of fighting experience of a child without any fight magic.

“I ask because it solidifies your agreement upon entering my home, is that fair Purin?” The man who hadn’t said anything jumped and could barely nod as his name was said.

“How’d you-” The first man looked back and forth between the two others, ending on Tyr as he interrupted him and was suddenly next to them again.

“Because that’s my job Warrin. If you’d like to file a complaint, the door will take you back where ever you came from.” The expression on Warrin’s face would’ve given Tyr joy if he hadn’t seen it many times before. The nod from the taller brought another set of confused looks between the two strangers as Tyr stood by a blank wall that now had a hall that Tyr came from holding two cups. One had coffee and the other had tea. Tyr handed each cup to the one had unspoken requests. Warrin held the cup but didn’t drink from the dark liquid in his cup while his partner sipped at the tea with a shocked expression.

“I only added sugar to it Warrin, not a drop of anything lethal. It’s exactly how you wish to have coffee. Go ahead, try it. Let’s chat a bit before business.” Aries gestured to the table which now had chairs around it, making the black and gold woodwork look like a side table. Warrin took a chair hesitantly, setting the untouched drink on top of a card. Tyr said nothing as he watched Purin look at the wall painted the same blue as everything else without a sign of a hall ever having been there.

“Is something the matter Purin?” Tyr knew there was something wrong but also already knew that the man would just shake his head and sit in the only chair left.

“Now, the reason you’ve come?” Warrin didn’t argue this time.

“The Prez needs to know what to expect in terms of the upcoming ball. The Division also requests to know if your… abilities have changed.”

“Let the President know that things will turn out smoothly so long as there’s no second guessing. If anyone second guesses this or her decisions, the whole event will end in catastrophe. There is nothing I will be able to help with. As for the Division,” Tyr paused to sip at the cup of water he had to the surprise of Purin. The cup hadn’t been there a moment ago and was still not there when Tyr put it down. “Give them this note. If anyone else other than the Bossman, I’ll know and no one will be happy. Your lives depend on no one else reading this note, you hear?”

Both men nodded as Purin pocketed the note that Tyr had in his hand an awful lot like how the water was back long enough for Tyr to take a sip.

“Anything else?” Tyr wanted to make sure there weren’t any sudden changes. He was aware of the bigger things but humans are the only thing not predictable enough to cause him to be wary. Purin finally spoke up on his confusion.

“How are you able to do everything you’ve done so far? Shouldn’t magic users only have one ability?” His voice was surprisingly clear for being so nervous that he drank two cups of tea before he could put it down.

“You must be new to the division. To answer your question, yes. Magic users can only have one  **power** ever and if there was ever a broken rule, not only would I know but I would also make the Division aware. I am not breaking any rules, there’s no need to worry about that since even if I was, I’d still let the Division know that I’m able as that is what I was  **Commanded** to do by another fellow magic user under the Division.” Tyr opened the door for them with a smile, all three of them by it just the way they entered beside that they were inside and heading out. There was a different scene outside than when they’d come in. now, it was night in what looked like Topia, a place of elegance and a lack of magic. “If you could do me one favor, don’t ask magic users for their ability. It’s quite rude.”

The unspoken question was heavy on Purin’s lips but upon Tyr addressing it in such way, the question was left in the house as the two men left to deliver the note.

Tyr shut the door with a faint smile. Yes, new members of the government were always fun to bother like this. Every one of them had a different reaction. Even Warrin was hiding his own reaction to Tyr.

A magic user could only be born with one ability but there was no limit as to what that  **power** could be and there have been a few cases of magic users being able to predict the future with accuracy up to a millennium from what has been recorded so far. Tyr was no exception. He had only one  **power** to call his own but could use many other abilities as well.

Tyr didn’t break rules but he could make them. Tyr couldn’t do magic until he first saw someone use  **Reader** and never forgot it. Then he started being able to  **Fly** and  **Port** without really thinking about. If he didn’t keep a list of what he could do, he would’ve forgotten most of them.

He sat back against the corner he’d been in before the men came over, not having walked or touched the door now shut. He realized for the first time that he couldn’t  **Mimic** the ability used on him. He’d never seen someone with  **Command** before and hasn’t since but he couldn’t copy it. He hadn’t seen it as he’d been blindfolded.

“Clever girl President, clever girl.”

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr fiddled with the box fan, his hand glowing a faint blue with  **Light** so he could see what he was doing. It had stopped working an hour after the men left and the room was getting too warm for Tyr to cover his left eye which wasn’t a very fun thing to uncover. People constantly asked why he covered it and he stopped answering and rumors spread like wildfire. His favorite one was that he’d gotten into a fight with the government and they gouged his eye out as punishment. It made him sound not only cooler but that he could still fight off the government.

Another knock on the door and a quick change of clothes while getting off the ceiling. He hated re **Binding** the fan so he just  **Lifted** himself now.

He opened the door and sighed as he let his friend in. Her name was I-a and she was also special, like him. She was a failed cyborg experiment from the government and was set to be free in Magix or so she claimed. She had no more ties to the higher-ups and enjoyed Tyr’s company. The problem was her energy.

I-a was easily the most hyper adult in all of Magix, having  **Boost** didn’t help that aspect at all. As though to prove that point, she had already made at least a hundred laps around his room before he had walked to his bed, sitting and waiting for her to relax enough to tell him why she was here.

“I-a, do you need something?” Tyr asked as she sat on her knees, looking down at her as she fidgeted with the drawers on his table. Fortunately, she had a drawer with a few mind games and fidget toys that she found quickly.

“I wanted to know if you read anything off the  **Wand** is all. I wanna know if there’s something that can help me out too,” she spoke quickly and softly despite her volume. She was an enigma all on her own.

“No, so far it just talks about past  **Mimic** users and alternative methods of  **Borrowing** without them being aware with an occasional mention of the possibility of copying other  **Mimics** to gain all they know.” The slump of I-a’s shoulders gave an excuse to keep talking. “Despite no mention of androids and cyborgs, it does discuss the idea of  **Mimics** becoming like glowing stones when using too many  **powers** and I need to talk about that with you.”

“Wait, what?” I-a looked up faster than normal, looking up at him with a hint of scrutiny. “People like you are at risk of what?”

“I’m not too sure either. It doesn’t mention it much elsewhere. If I had the resources, I’d read more about it but…”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. The gov’s got you trapped 24/7 under a guise of house arrest. Whatever. I’ll see what I can sneak in for ya’. Do you need me to hide the  **Wand** for a while? Their last meeting didn’t seem real smooth.” I-a was the only person outside the transactions who knew about them as well as what the real reason for his actions.

“Yeah, I might. They seem to be catching on. Next week probably will have another House Check,” Tyr sighed and fell back onto his bed, looking at his ceiling. The Division had to have noticed the rate he’d been learning new skills by now. It was more than two every other hour and if he couldn’t leave the house, what was their explanation for it?

“I think you should just focus on keeping your emotions in check. You’re makin’ things float again.”

Tyr sat up only to see that she was right. The table was floating almost all the way to the box fan with a few other gizmos that littered his floor. He needed to clean up.

He jumped as he felt something cold and metallic touch his hand. I-a was much closer and calmer than earlier, one hand on his and the other slowly moving to his check. He flinched at first but half forced himself to relax into her hand, his own shaking enough to cause the quiet sound of knocking on metal. I-a was completely used to this response, even humming an odd tune to block the sound of knocking out of Tyr’s head. She knew that he wasn’t really there, not physically. She wasn’t sure what the trigger was, not yet. They were working on that together and she was the only one allowed by the government to be in his home for so long.

They didn’t know why Tyr would almost randomly drop out of existence for hours sometimes. They didn’t know why this happened but it did so they would take care of this as best they could.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

_ Tyr couldn’t feel his body or open his eyes as he woke up, everything felt off somehow but he couldn’t figure it out. It was almost like something normally present was missing from everywhere. It was uncomfortable and Tyr wished he could move around to get rid of the feeling. _

_ He heard someone nearby shuffling and talking to someone else nearby, distracting Tyr from his discomfort. The voice was older and felt as though it had a forced masculinity to it, possibly coming from a teen’s form. The words and pitch were feminine and had a softer tone than Tyr could understand considering the topic they were discussing. _

_ “-have to leave for a while. I’ll come back as soon as I can. Can you hold out until Dadda can come back?” _

_ “I-I don’t want to be a-alone… Dad i-is mean,” this voice sounded no older than a child but had more wisdom than an adult. There was a sound like someone was crying. _

_ “Hey, hey, it’s alright. I’m just going out for a while. I’ll come back for you soon okay? You’re Dadda’s little star, remember? You’ll always be my light and the dark of Dad can’t hurt you because you’re stronger than that. You’re important and special and I love you more than anything. Never forget that okay?” The older person ruffled the younger’s hair, sniffling accompanying the sound as it reached Tyr. _

_ He didn’t quite understand the situation. Why was the person leaving? Why was this child being left with someone who filled them with fear? Under what kind of home did they live under? _

_ Tyr didn’t get to think about it any further as the nothingness around him blurred, without changing, disorientating him as he suddenly could see and feel around him. He doubled over and coughed up the measly lunch he had behind a bush, seeing how his arms faded and grass went through him. He didn’t exist enough to be seen by residents of this… world. _

_ He stood up shakily and looked out of the alley, seeing a boy race across the roadway. The boy had hair that was an unnatural red color yet faded as though he hadn’t re-upped the color in months. It was an odd sight. He was silent and faded into his surroundings despite the bright coloring of his hair. _

_ Tyr stepped out of the alley as he watched the stranger slip in and out of a store in a minute, holding things meant for someone other than his own person. A thief? No, a robber would take only for themselves and refuse to share. Thieves rarely kept friends that close. Yet here this boy was, swiftly running off. Tyr was curious and gave chase. He would find out one way or another. _

_ Tyr followed as long as he could before the stranger left his sight. Tyr was not as agile or as fast as this other person was. It was both impressive and concerning. Why would someone have to learn this type of skill? _

_ There was a ding of a store door and Tyr moved towards it as fast as he could, hoping he wouldn’t miss the cause. He wanted to catch up with this person stealing from the public. It was a very curious behavior. _

_ Tyr eventually reached the sight of the boy he’d been following in time to see him running off with less stuff and some obvious injuries as a man waved a broom like a weapon. That was unfortunate, Tyr thought as he slowly followed after the red hair. He was upset he had missed what happened but at least he had the chance to catch up. _

_ The stranger seemed less agile now but still made it to his drop off point before Tyr, having laid the stuff - which included medical supplies, food, and other odds and ends - on the grass in front of a dilapidated building and walked off, not getting too far before someone called out to the stranger. _

_ “Red? Is that you?” _

_ The brown haired kid got no answer more than a small smile before “Red” ran off again, leaving the younger boy alone at the building that turned out to be full of boys as a few heads popped out of the windows and one young adult walked out. _

_ This new boy had rainbow hair and tried to comfort the shaking child with a hand on his shoulder, eyes searching the horizon. This new person obviously knew something was wrong, he just hadn’t figured out the solution yet. _

_ Tyr made eye contact with the rainbow-haired man before everything went dark again and he lost the feeling of himself within the dark. _

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr couldn’t help but whimper as he woke up, trying to stretch his limbs. He felt like he’d been running for days. Then he remembered what happened as the fog in his mind lifted some.

He opened his eyes and looked up slightly, realizing that I-a was not only at his some still but she was also humming still. She looked to him and slowly stopped humming, smiling softly.

“Welcome back to the real world. How are you feeling?” With faint hesitation, she added, “Where were you this time?”

“... his name is Red.” That was all he needed to say. I-a was aware of the boy with red hair that was fading. Tyr was often trapped to watch or listen to him. Tyr needed to talk about this and so she got him to a point where she didn’t have to force it out of him but this time seemed… different.

“Y… you got a name? How did you-” She didn’t finish as she started floating slightly. The change implied that Tyr was starting to freak out over something about this “Red” person. That wasn’t a good thing, especially since he wasn’t a real person.

“Tyr, calm down, remember the methods I told you. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.” It wasn’t a countdown before punishment, it was nothing more than a reminder: he needed to look around and find five things he could see, four things he could touch, three for hear, two for smell, and one for taste.

I-a couldn’t do much as she watched his eyes look around the room, grounding himself in reality. He needed help more often than he wanted to admit. The government should offer him some kind of support yet he lived alone and in house arrest with lots of freedoms, having friends over for a limited time, but not even a pet in sight. He needed comfort all day, every day. He wouldn't ask so she hoped for once they were being watched so they’d send someone to keep him protected from himself.

I-a rubbed his cheek slightly as he stopped hyperventilating, one eye still looking around the room as the other one started to glow again. It was the same color as the rest of the magical runes she knew were growing. They were like a virus, the parts covered in runes and glow were harder for him to use and pained him. Tyr said he didn’t notice anything different but I-a could see it with the eye of someone who spent her both her free time and had a job for people-watching. That’s just what artists do best after all.

Tyr covered his infected eye, just noticing for the first time that the bandages were missing since he had reawoken.

“I had to take them off before you clawed them off in your sleep. You had a rough visual, didn’t you?” Tyr relaxed slightly, still covering his eye but reaching up where the bandages would’ve covered and felt the raising skin from him scratching. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“There are things I need to do.” Tyr looked up at I-a as he spoke, both eyes trained on her despite only one of them having any way of telling.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER HAS ABUSIVE ACTIONS. PHYSICAL AND MENTAL. PLEASE BE CAREFUL.  
> I'll slide the abusive things to the opposite side just so you can skip it if you want to still read.

He did get his home thoroughly checked the day before the next meeting with the Division so he had a day of freedom. He wasn’t allowed in the house when they were checking his home and didn’t mind the government going through his stuff, they gave most of it to him and they couldn't see or touch his deck so nothing could go wrong with that. I-a had even taken the  **Wand** so it wouldn’t get confiscated. All in all, he had no problem with it since he got a place to live and a job. He didn’t get paid for it but he wasn’t made fun of by non-magic users and that made it almost seem worth it if only the people of Magix agreed.

Magix was a great place to live for the homeless. Every door that could be open to anyone. The people were nice and kind to each other. Harsh words were rarely spoken to another Magix citizen and everyone shared. Except for Tyr.

Tyr had been singled out by both his standing with the government that forced all  **Magixians** to poverty and by the runes that glowed on his body. He couldn’t think of any reason why people stopped treating him like another citizen in Magix. As a child, no one had any problem with him, letting him in and giving him food and comforting him that he’d find his magic someday. Then the government came in and ruined everything. People went so far as to shut their doors and pull their kids indoors when he came by even when he did nothing more than stare at the dusty ground as he walked with his hands in his jacket pockets just as he was doing now. There wasn’t much else he could do.

It changed after he had just finished school and needs some way form of entertainment. He was only fifteen and Magix didn’t have money-making occupations unless you worked as an entertainer for Topia. That wasn’t enough for Tyr. He didn’t have any idea what his  **power** was then and could only use his deck that’d appeared recently and  **Hover** a few inches off the ground. The Division had had a patrol coming through the day Tyr learned a third  **power** , the only one he grew to regret. No one got hurt but everyone was talking about it.

When the patrol heard about a fifteen-year-old with three  **powers** , they just about ran to Tyr and dragged him away from everyone there. His friends, family, and even the people who were just standing around to watch him. They watched him alright, watched him leave everyone behind despite his efforts to escape them.

After that, he was  **Commanded** to do what the government asked of him and not second guess them. He was kept blindfolded and chained as though a wild animal. He just remembered being scared the whole time, whether he could feel the sun on his back or the pole underground he would be tied to back when they were still deciding his fate. Occasionally, he heard someone singing while underground, not singing as much a tune being carried by a strong voice but he never forgot it. How could he? It was the only form of comfort he had during his time in Topia.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr looked around the empty streets as he spent his free time wishing he could be out more. His house was so cramped up and small. People live with family in their makeshift homes of twigs and branches, any more than that for a home and the Division tears it down. What a messed up way to live.

Tyr looked down as he caught a glimpse of a mother yanking her daughter back behind the door of palm leaves. He watched the dust rise as he took a step and his foot turned in. Tyr paused after a moment, looking around the emptiness and catching a few young eyes peek out. He smiled as realistically as he could before taking a step and disappearing from the street. He wished he could stay in one place without ruining the social aspects.

The place he stepped into existence went quiet in a ripple outwards from him. He did nothing more than watch his feet as he continued walking around the place that used to be welcoming to him. One forced alliance and he become the black sheep. Did they not remember how he fought the patrol off? How he begged someone to help? Or have they forgotten how beat up he’d come back? How quiet he’d become? He changed because he wanted to survive, not because he wanted to.

He was torn from his thoughts as a yelp sounded nearby, he looked up and realized he was pulling things up from the ground including people. He muttered an honest apology that no one would believe before he  **Ported** to an open space where no one was. He needed to let off some steam before he went back to his home on the border between Magix and Topia.

The hill he was starting to ruin by throwing things like trees and rocks at each other was called Mount Tebanond and was closer to a small mountain than a large hill. It was the almost opposite side of Magix as his house and not too many people lived on this side. It was a great place for him to let it out or practice.

Tyr discovered Mount Tebanond by accident when he first learned to  **Port** at seventeen and had stayed for almost a week, getting a new rule that prevented him from leaving the house except for two reasons: a House Check and Test Week. He liked being out of the house but not for Test Week, he’d rather stay in his closet with the dresser than deal with another Test Week. The thought of another Test Week coming up gave him a little more fear to work off, smashing two trees together closer to the ground than before. He didn’t want to be caught by the Division or they’d make an excuse to bring back an old and third reason he could be out of the house. Something worse than Test Week. Not worth it in the long run.

As the remains of the two trees settled on the ground, a ringing in his ears pulled him forcefully to the present and to his knees. He tried to fight the call but he had been trained too well, forced to  **Port** at the feet of the Checking Group’s leader, a taller man with a shaven beard. The smile under the beard wasn’t the prettiest but it made up for it by giving out doses of fear. The voice that came from it was almost completely blocked out by the ringing that seemed louder than a second ago.

“Your place is clean this time. There’ll be another check tomorrow, runt.”

The group didn’t leave until after they had all taken a turn mocking Tyr, forcing him into a corner with bruises and a bloody nose. The ringing didn’t go away until they were long gone, the sound lingering much after it’d been turned off.

Tyr hated everything about the end of a House Check. Being out was fine but as soon as he was called back, there was nothing but pain for a while after.

The ringing was the worst part. He healed faster ever since he met a  **Medic** a year back so the physical pain he got didn’t bother him as much but nothing could get the ringing out of his ears or his mind. The sound was there in the back of his mind, a reminder that he wasn’t his own person. He wasn’t allowed to make his own decisions or have freedom.

The Division had trained him to be loyal to them and them alone as well as used different  **powers** to enforce other things. They trained him to Come but they  **Commanded** him to stay. They trained him to learn but made him  **Forget** his family. They trained him to be good but gave him free will with consequences. It all went back to that room. They told him that it was still being kept the way he likes it, saved in case he  **Breaks** the vows they made him take. He had the ability to be free and he could hide but they would find him and he wouldn’t be able to  **Port** away to safety.

The door opened. Tyr stayed still and quiet, knowing that if it was someone from the Division it would just be round two. He hid his face in his knees and tried to stop shivering.

There were soft footsteps, coming closer? He couldn’t tell, there was a ringing still in his ears.

He heard an unfamiliar gasp. Who was that? No one comes in since the government always does. He tried to curl up more, wincing and whining quietly as he pulled his knees closer to his body than they wanted to be.

He could feel someone’s hand coming closer, it was warm and bare. Not the higher ups then, they all wore gloves to avoid touching him.

The hand hesitated and then moved away, hurried footsteps rushing out the open door. The door was open still? Maybe they realized who he was and left in fear or hatred. He preferred being hated than feared, it was easier to make yourself likable than to lessen the fears of others.

Maybe he could sleep before the nearby village took their opportunity. They didn’t like him at all and maybe he could be freed that way.

He didn’t give it a second thought and was out cold by the time the little girl came back, dragging a mildly annoyed healer who second-guessed himself as he saw the sad state of affairs that was Tyr.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

There was something wet on his forehead as Tyr woke up the next day. He shifted as he tried to block whatever that bright light was and groaned. He was sore and felt stiff, the ground he was laying flat on seemed different than he remembered his corner being before he passed out.

A pair of hands on his chest kept him from moving more. He stiffened and the hands moved quickly away once Tyr didn’t seem like he was going to be moving again.

“Daddy says you have to stay put until you’re not hot anymore.” It was a little girl’s voice to his right.

“No, I said until his fever goes down. There is heat to a fever but that isn’t the problem here.” It was an older man’s voice to his left.

They were both softer than Tyr was used to, more caring. Both also had an accent, definitely Magix citizens.

“Oh… okay Daddy,” the girl’s smile could be heard in her voice. Her father’s hum sounded like he was smiling too. This was very odd. Tyr opened his right eye slowly, wanting to know what was happening.

The bright light was the sun from outside the leaf-hut. The little girl was sitting on one side of him and her father was on the other side. They were looking at each other with matching pairs of eyes. The father had a blue and green set and the girl had the same colors, opposite sides. The father noticed Tyr was looking around before she did.

“Ah, hello. I hope it’s alright that you’re here. My daughter saw people leaving your house and caught a glimpse of you. She doesn’t have much self-control and has a lot of curiosity. When she went into your house and saw you, she pulled me in to help you.” The man seemed about Tyr’s age, his voice raspy as though not used often. His hair had a funny tinge to it that shifted depending on the angle, rainbow from dark brown was the best description for it.

“You were hurt really bad and no one should be hurt like that when Daddy’s around,” the girl spoke up again, looking almost ready to start year two of school. She’d learn what her  **power** was in a few more months, then the school would adapt to teach her how to use it more than anything else. The complexity of an ability decided the length of a school life. Tyr didn’t stay in school too long, no one knew how to teach a  **Mimic** everything since they could learn it all.

“Lilly, why don’t you go get him something to drink. Okay?” He didn’t get a response as she just got up and ran off, laughing. The comforting air left with her. The man knew who Tyr was and was clearly not happy that Tyr was there at the moment.

“I don’t know why you are injured nor do I care to know. As soon as you can go back, go.” The man was clearly someone who had a hatred for Tyr. That was okay. Tyr nodded slightly in response, trying to mutter a sorry.

He saw the man clench his jaw, looking out of the hut for his daughter. He was being nice to Tyr because his girl wanted him to be. Tyr understood why no one wanted to ruin a child's view of their parents.

Tyr decided to leave as soon as he could, preferably before they came for his weekly check later that day. He’d get punished more if he wasn’t there.

Lilly showed up after a while longer, holding a cup half full of what looked like tea but didn’t smell like it. She gave it to her father who had been smiling since she came back. He was a good actor, Tyr had to give him credit for that.

“Here you go, Daddy!” She was so happy to be able to help someone, especially to help her dad to help someone else. She wanted to be like him when she got older, Tyr could tell from how she had a bounce in her step as she sat next to Tyr again. She didn’t stop him from sitting up this time, actually helping him up so he wouldn’t strain himself too much.

He looked out the hut’s entrance and saw the corner of his home. They weren’t too far, he could  **Port** there without too much issue.

“Here you go!” The cup was held into his vision asking him to drink it. He only took a sip because he didn’t want to bother them too long but he didn’t want to upset the girl. She was so sweet and the water in the cup tasted awful. He’d need to see about helping them out. They didn’t care for him but he cared for them, their children didn’t deserve to be raised like this.

“I’m going to go back now,” Tyr’s voice was as raspy as the medic’s as he looked at Lilly. Her expression dropped into a pout appropriate for someone her age but not for older people. He smiled back and gave thanks before she blinked and found him gone.

Tyr heard her calling for “hurt person” for a much too long of a time while in his own home.

He’d already been out of the house for too long for the day and by the time he had put his one-room home in order again. He had barely an hour to clean himself off. The smell of the residential remedies lingered on his skin. They would get in trouble as much as he was going to be in. He didn’t want anyone else to get stuck like he was. It wasn’t right and it was barely survivable. So he  **Changed** the wall to a hallway that led to a shower. The Division already knew he could do that, that was why he wasn’t given anything better even though it takes a lot of energy to do anything as physically manipulative. If anything started taking a physical toll, they’d make him  **Forget** it and continue on with their pet project. It had happened only once before. He remembered he had something else he could do that made him sleep for days straight after doing it but that was all. It bothered him almost as much as the ringing in the back of his mind.

He tried to think about the past to distract himself from the pain of the water on his bruises and sore muscles. It barely worked but it was better than nothing.

He thought about when they had first taken him in, after the  **Command** but before he was allowed to be put back into Magix. They used to be nicer, gaining his trust for the first year. He would’ve been a better dog for them if it was still like the first year. The President heard about him about a month before things changed. She seemed to take a liking to him and gave the Division permission to continue under certain conditions. They followed all of them but one: continue treating him as a citizen of Topia.

The President was an honest and compassionate woman, passing laws to benefit the whole population. She helped relax tensions between Matopia and neighboring countries but she was unaware that within her country was enough tension to break it up into two. Magix and Topia were on the verge of fighting each other. The Division kept it from the President, giving her good reports about how well the magixians were doing and that everyone got along and that Tyr was well. None of it was true but she believed them.

Once the check ups had slowed to a stop and the President was pleased about Tyr’s treatment, the Division stepped up their game and Tyr had his trust broken multiple times for years.

They treated him good for a dog but bad for a sixteen-year-old. 

Tyr was tied to something at or on a leash all the time. He was lucky to get scraps twice a day. He did get water every day though, it tasted funny sometimes but he still drank it. They didn’t give him enough to care what was wrong about it, just that he needed it before providing it. Perhaps that was why he never threw anything away unless it could get him in trouble. The Division didn’t think that through very well he thought as he ran shampoo through his faded brown hair.

They also didn’t plan him very well as he remembered some of the training he had to go through.

Before they taught him the punishment system, he knew the reward system. He just about thrived through that, learning more  **powers** during that time period. He didn’t remember how long it lasted since days blurred together in his cell. He remembered that the sun was brighter in Topia and there was a nicer, older man who would sneak him Topian candy that was much better than any sweet in Magix. Tyr wished he could have more and hoped that old man was doing alright. He’d be upset to learn that he was in trouble for being nice to him. Admittedly, Tyr found out that the first guy was his first handler and was supposed to be used to hurt Tyr mentally but he couldn't pull his weight. Tyr was transferred to someone else almost immediately after the Division found out that the first person wasn’t doing his job. His second handler was just called Sergeant and trained Tyr to Come when he heard the ringing. It was also Sergeant’s fault that Tyr couldn’t handle close spaces, dark areas, things around his neck, yelling, using his more dangerous  **powers** without permission, talking in public, or lots of other things. The things Tyr struggled with daily affected him so much that his third and current handler makes fun of him every time he comes in to check on him, offering Tyr scarfs he’d have to wear for hours or trapping Tyr in a  **Box** after getting Tyr to make it. Those were darker than anything else.

This third handler was called one thing but had Tyr call him more humiliating things, stuff like “Master” and Tyr was called equally awful things like “Pet” and “Precious” even though Tyr was very clear about not liking it. What did, he suppose, caretakers care about Tyr’s opinion anyway? They never listened to him unless it answered their questions the way they wanted to be answered.

Tyr couldn’t even prepare himself for his handler’s visits since he would show up whenever he wanted to, especially with an audience. The Division would have a field day of it, the most powerful magixian in all of Matopia being reduced to a blubbering mess at the feet of someone without anything but words.

Tyr stayed in the shower completely silent for a while, the thought just occurred to him. He was the most powerful person in all honesty. He had more abilities than anyone in Magix and no one in Topia had magic, they just had better technology. Tyr could leave whenever he wanted to. Why didn’t he just  **Port** somewhere he can’t hear the ringing where the Division can’t get him back from?

He turned the shower off and stiffly got out to dry off. Magic didn’t work well outside Matopia according to the government. If any magixian left, their  **power** would be rendered mostly useless and one couldn't  **Port** outside the border as they’d appear in a special Topian jail that prevented magic being used. Tyr wasn’t sure how much of that was true anymore, he heard a few words about magic users in other countries that never had any before. The Division needed a refresher course on hiding thoughts, Tyr could  **Read** those as well as he could read the book about where his loyalties should be.

The hallway disappeared as he got dressed by the closet and thought about the likelihood of Sir Dumb showing up. He giggled to himself at the nickname for his handler. That was a good one, better than the last one for sure.

The knock at the door as he finished making himself presentable worried him. The knock was familiar. Tyr hoped it was the two from last week, they were fun to mess with.

Tyr’s hopes were smothered underground as he saw not just one familiar face but rather five and an awfully bad looking box labeled with his name.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr’s idea of a vacation generally included laughter, stars, and freedom even if it was only an hour. The Division decided that wasn’t what Tyr needed. They thought Tyr needed a reminder course on who was in charge. This meant a repeat on every punishment and a test on Tyr’s abilities, what he can do and how many effects of the  **Command** were still there.

This was not Test Week.

This was three days of why Tyr couldn’t leave.

The Division didn’t care about Tyr as long as he listened to what they told him.

They would always remind him that he was the underdog. He had no power over them. He could never fight them. He would never see the sun if they told him he wasn’t allowed to.

 

The first day was all physical. He was asked to do things he couldn’t do without experiencing pain from the strain on his body. He didn’t have the strength to carry what they made him carry. He didn’t have the endurance to run as long as they made him run. He also had a  **power** -blocking collar on all day, preventing him from healing himself to keep going. He was out of breath and out of willpower before the sun was over the mountains in the horizon.

As he slowed down, they got harder on him, weight was increased and time was lengthened. They would yell at him that trainees in the Division could do better. They would call him “old” and “fragile” while using nicknames that never left his mind.

By the time the sun had gotten three-fourths the way across the sky, Tyr hoped for mercy that he knew he wouldn’t get. He wouldn’t be given food or drink until he was put into his cell for the night. They told him so maybe he would get nothing. They lied like that in an attempt to get him to push himself further than was healthy. The sight of him throwing up blood seemed like a goal as much as seeing how many bones they could get him to break just by overworking him.

Tyr got a short break so the Trainers could have a dinner break. He didn’t have to do anything but stand still against a pole. A very cold pole. They really didn’t want him going anywhere so he was also tied to said pole with a leash shorter than his arm.

He knew what was next. He could see the “equipment” outside the door to the area he was confined in. At least he was in a separated area from the other Division members. Whether it was because they didn’t want a magic user touching their equipment or to hide how badly they treated him, Tyr didn't care whenever he was here. Standing on a leg that was at least fractured made it difficult to keep composure, he’d never hear the end of it if trainees saw him crying with the blood dripping from his nose. It was barely **standable** at the moment.

He found his own thoughts funny. He was barely standing. He wondered if he had finally lost his mind. Here he was, tied to a pole like a dog with more pain than the average army, and he was chuckling to himself. He thought insanity would be less painful.

He shifted his weight slightly, feeling a new line of tears falling down his cheek. His leg may be broken at this point and the chances of being  **Healed** was very low.

“I-a has something to look forward to,” Tyr muttered as he shut his eyes and leaned more against the pole. The sun was almost down. Maybe he could risk a nap before the Trainers came back. Maybe… 

He barely had gotten his eyes closed for longer than a moment before the crack of a whip sounded. He let out an even sigh, disguising the action by looking at the man with the whip he’d seen by the door. There was a definite air about this particular trainer. Tyr searched for the word that described the man before all thoughts other than  _ survive _ left his mind. He thought of it right as the whip met his bare skin the first time.

Sadistic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is a lot worse. There will be warnings then as well. If you think I need to add anything, give me an fyi. Please.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: BODY HORROR (at the start) AND ABUSE (most of it)  
> PLEASE BE CAREFUL  
> The worst of it all will be to the opposite side like last chapter.

Day two was quieter than the first day at least. He was in a room that was all white except where he been curled up since being thrown in at what he assumed was midnight.

At the time of being thrown in, the leash and his shirt were removed but not the collar that prevented him from using magic. He also found that had a bit of wiggle room with his magic despite the collar, he could heal himself if he wanted too. He was afraid that it was a test. If it was, he didn’t want to fail.

He knew the walls were white because he’d been in this room before. It was dark and had no windows, just a slit above the door for air flow. The air still grew stale after a short time even after he healed himself enough that he didn’t have any broken bones or still bleeding cuts. He was still bruised heavily and felt stiff and sore from the House Check. He still could barely open his “ **infected** ” eye. The marks all over his form would scars if he didn’t finish healing them but he wouldn’t take that satisfaction from the Division. They would only redo the injuries to make sure it was worse.

He knew the walls were soft because every time he touched them they felt like pillows and blankets. They were worn and one corner had some stuffing missing and looked recently replaced. The walls felt inviting and comforting but held back secrets the Division leader kept from everyone else. Tyr was left with that plan, the head of the Division saw potential in it but had no way of exploiting it.

Tyr knew there were people outside his cell talking about their work day. The room was soundproofed from both thoughts and voices until a small opening in the middle of the door was opened. It would be impressive if only Tyr wasn’t feeling the effects of total silence. The ringing in the back of his head seemed to echo off the cotton walls. The words from the Division sounded like whispers coming from the inside of Tyr’s injuries. It hurt worse than what they did to him.

Tyr knew that outside the room smelled like freedom with a touch of fear. It was thrilling when he wasn’t feeling particularly well. The knowledge that the Division was afraid of him and used fear and instincts to keep the bear asleep even when they poke it with a red hot stick was relaxing when Tyr was trapped in the back of his head, the focus of his attention was to survive.

He knew that Topian food tasted the best. He could remember the way it warmed him from the inside out and how the flavours felt like edible heaven. He hadn’t had any of it since that first year when he was first brought in. The candy and meals three times a day was more than bliss. It was often a curse to know that there was food like that but could have none of it.

He knew that someday his body would give out under these tests and he could finally be free of all the torture. Someday, he wouldn’t need to keep himself calm. He wouldn't have to worry about feeling his magic try to work only to be forced down by an electrical shock. The thought helped him smile despite the pain in his face. The faint glow of the runes gave everything a sad feel. It all felt good as Tyr hummed to himself asleep.

 

A loud ringing woke Tyr up after what he thought was an hour. It was hard to tell but they probably set the collar to keep him from sleeping the whole day away at least.

Tyr squirmed around, holding his head and whimpering in an attempt to make the noise stop. The action of him losing control for a second caused the collar to shock him as magic pooled in his gut. He let out a yelp from the shock but it sounded off to himself. He realized there was a bandage on his arm that he could barely look at as he lay on the ground shaking. He couldn't move much from the amount of electricity from the collar and there was still the loud ringing that stretched on for what felt like forever.

He tried to rip the bandage off only to get another shock that sent volts down his spine. He arched his back at that, laying flat against the ground otherwise facing up. Both eyes were open as he noticed the blue glow on the ceiling that got stronger as he looked up.

He heard something rip and heard the next shock from the collar as it went through his convulsing body.

This was new.

This was painfully new.

This was different than anything else that they had done to him before.

He had one opinion on this test: He hated it more than Test Week.

He heard another rip as he managed to roll onto his side and curl up. Another shock. He could hear the hum of electricity and feel the ringing in his feet.

He tried to sit get up from belly on the ground of to get shocked again. He gagged as his half-scream got mixed with the bloody vomit in his throat.

The room seemed brighter than normal.

And smaller?

He didn’t get to think about it as his mind was bombarded with the thoughts of the head of the Division telling Tyr that he found a way to get what he wanted and that Tyr would follow instructions or be trapped in this state for much longer.

Tyr knew they wouldn’t be able to hear or see him but tried to growl a no, gagging on that too. It came out as a cough as more burning acid came up his throat.

“ _You will comply. You will be loyal to me and me alone. Understand?_ ” The Division’s thoughts filled Tyr’s mind, pusing out any other option Tyr might’ve had. “ _Let yourself give in even if this would be more fun to watch._ ”

Tyr whimpered and tried to claw his way to the door. He couldn’t move one arm from under him and the other was in front of him, reaching weakly to the door he could barely make out from his tears of pain. There was so much pain.

“ _Give in Tyr. you can’t win._ ”

Tyr tried to fight the excruciating pain, hearing something rip before he felt it.

Something was wrong.

Something was horribly wrong.

He had trouble thinking anything besides that thought of something being painfully wrong and whatever the head of the Division wanted him to do.

To top it all off, Tyr was afraid of that man more than ever. What had he done to cause this?

This was awful.

An unfinished curse to the Division was his last thought before everything went dark and he helplessly gave in to whatever was causing him so much pain.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

He woke up on his own accord after long enough time that his **Heal** had fixed everything. He didn’t feel sore as much as he felt off. He wasn’t sure until he tried to stand up, only to collapse in on himself and notice that everything was off.

The room he was in was the same one as earlier but it felt smaller. He looked around to see the past scratches in the walls and thought they were smaller than his current claws. Everything seemed smaller except himself.

He whimpered as he noticed what was wrong and it wasn’t the room.

The first thing about himself he noticed was how cold he felt. He realized after a better self-check that he was cold because he wasn’t human anymore. He was made of nothing more than bone.

The Division had successfully gone through with their plan but with a bit of a hiccup. They had only wanted to turn him into a beast but he had become a full monster from the horror stories.

He had four clawed paws and a tail that he slapped himself with a few times. Tyr had his runes still and from what he could tell, there were more of them to cover the new mass of him. He assumed his still had the one eye that was filled with the same blue. He couldn't see his face so he had no idea really.

The ringing in his head brought his attention back to his situation. It was getting louder. They were coming for him. He curled up with the instincts that made no sense to his mind but made perfect sense to his body. That confused him even more and the ringing got louder.

The door opened and Tyr wedged himself in the corner, his expression a poor imitation of a glare that was failing to hide his fear.

The head of the Division was there, smiling. He opened his arms as though showing off his greatest achievement. It sickened Tyr to the very depths of his stomach that didn’t seem to exist anymore.

“As you can see, we were successful. The serum was not only accepted into his system but the reverse was also true. If it’s still him as well, then we have kept complete control over the most powerful thing in the world possibly.” The head of the Division seemed proud, talking to someone who hadn’t come in yet. There was a voice that Tyr couldn't understand, it sounded like static.

“Alright, I’ll find a way. It’s shoved itself into a corner for now.”

There was more static.

“Of course. I wouldn’t want to let my main sponsor down.”

A trainee stepped into the room, the white of his helmet flashed blue as Tyr looked at him. Tyr could see the tiny expression of fear grow as the door was shut behind the poor trainee. The slot was open. The Division head’s voice came into Tyr’s elongated skull.

“ _For being a good boy, have a snack. If you want more, be good and do what you’re told._ ”

The reward system was back even if it was a little twisted.

After the voice in his head left, Tyr found his body doing things without him telling it to. His consciousness was fading as he got closer to the trainees, getting up slowly and pawing forward with mild confidence.

The last memory Tyr recollected in the future of the trainee was a small and loud scream cut short.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

The next Tyr regained consciousness, he had a muzzle made of the same stuff as the collar they replaced. He was also tied to a fairly familiar pole in what seemed to be his training area. None of the equipment from before was around anymore. Instead there was a small building that looked vaguely familiar. Except that said building was not actually small, it just barely would fit Tyr as he was now.

He got up slowly and wandered to the structure, head low. It was his old home. There was the box fan still on the ceiling and the dresser shoved in the closet. The table was pushed to a corner and the bed was gone, replaced with a carpet rug in the center. Tyr had just enough leash to lay on the carpet. It was better than the padded room from before at least.

He let his body doing the moving, finding it easier that way since he didn't quite understand what to do. Just the face that his body and mind had different extincts was a matter he should figure out soon. For the moment, he settled down in a more comfortable position than earlier, watching the door and expecting someone to come out.

He was half right. Someone did come through the doors, just not someone he expected.

“Tyr! What happened? Your house was gone and- What did they do to you!?” I-a’s sudden volume and appearance startled him. He jumped back into the house, the collar choking him as he pulled the on the leash too far. He tried to get further into the house as I-a’s demeanor changed, becoming less of a hyperactive worrier into something more confident and smug to match the smirk on her face.

“I’m kidding. They told me it worked but I didn’t believe it until just now. Look at the big monster you’ve become! I expected something furrier but I’ll take what I can get.” I-a’s smirk grew with a chuckle as she stepped within arms reach of him., she touched the side of his head, the comforting lack of warmth felt like a lie. Another trick of the Division.

“When they first brought the idea to me all those years ago, I thought it was crazy talk, so I decided to ask for permission to get a little extra information about you. I was happily surprised as to what they managed to keep under so many secrets. There was untapped potential that I absolutely wanted to unlock. The first step was gaining trust obviously. You’re so trusting of other victims, that trust would need to be broken soon anyway and this helped immensely with that, I’m sure.” The laugh at the end sent shivers up Tyr’s spine as she examined him to the best of her ability. She touched his head and his tail and everything in between. “After I gained easily earned trust and unexpected friendship, I brought things to speed up your learning. You always asked what their explanation was for you learning so much despite having no real social life. All those people you called friends were people who were tricked into going to your house as often as they were, they didn't see you as you of course or no one would go there. What a fun spell that was to put on your home.

“Using you to **Read** things I had trouble translating was a bonus. The **wand** was a heavy piece of work that I never would've deciphered if not for your help. The information you helped me get about your own kind of magic helped me create the serum.” She paused here, standing in front of him with a smile and looking at him with a gleam in her eyes. “Thank you for that by the way, this could have taken many more years otherwise.”

Tyr refused to meet her eyes, looking down and keeping his tail still. He felt restless. Listening to someone he thought was a friend ramble about how she helped the people who were hurting others was more than humiliating but also downright painful. His chest ached and his head rang. He wished she would go away but she wasn’t done yet.

“There’s only a few more tests to conduct before the retrain you so long as you're still there. For example, that trainee from earlier? There’s no remains of him anywhere. He’s completely gone despite you being a skeleton and having no organs to help you digest anything. We also need to figure out why the runes are still not completely covering you. It means there’s still more for you to learn by the way. We’d also love to discover if you could turn back. Wouldn’t that be fun? You could have a different look there too!” Her tone made Tyr feel sick and his head hurt more.

How could she be so energetic? She was smiling the whole time and still had a bounce in her step and voice. I-a was the monster of the Division, the cruel experimentalists that pulled the scientific strings and because she was robotic, she would never die. She would play out her part until her battery finally died.

Tyr could do nothing. He didn’t even know what she was talking about anymore. He stopped listening to the crazy robot. He didn’t care anymore. He closed his eyes, curled up on the carpet as far from the entrance as possible. He was so tired of everything. The next time they would wake him up, it would be for a test or for a punishment. He would never be free. Not like this. Not with how he was.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

He must’ve fallen asleep because the next time he opened his eyes - or eye sockets now, one could suppose - it was dark outside. The only light he had was from himself as he woke up the rest of the way.

Tyr stretched before getting up, looking around and expecting there to be someone watching him. He admittedly was disappointed that there was no one but he shook the thought away. He could try to switch back since no one was paying him any mind.

How would he go about changing back to something he was more used to though?

He hadn’t any skin or muscles at the moment but he seemed to operate just fine as though he did. Tyr could even see without eyes and he still felt sore. His state of being confused him greatly. If he turned back would he dust?

He paused a moment, looking at his clawed paws of bone. Where did that though come from? Dust? Living things don’t dust unless burned and bones didn’t dust. They’d found lots of bones before, they were in museums that the schools could take them to. Tyr had seen them before so why did he have this thought at all?

Tyr whimpered quietly and laid on his side in the grass, rolling around a bit. He needed to clear his mind some and figured he’d let himself enjoy these little things like this as well. Multitasking, he reasoned, would help the Division realize that it was still Tyr in this form and was still more powerful than the whole of them.

Tyr paused and looked up towards the door, hearing the slight sound of approaching footsteps. It took a second before the owner of the sounds showed up. He tried to get up before the door opened but found himself caught in his leash, it wrapped around one of his legs and got caught on the ridges on his spine. He whined and tried to get it off but couldn’t get it off his leg in time before the new man came through the door. Tyr looked up at him, whining quietly and trying to make himself smaller. He didn’t want to get punished.

The man did nothing more than sit in front of Tyr and act uninterested in Tyr other than an occasional glance. The man was messing with something in his lap, hidden by the trench coat.

Tyr couldn’t help the curiosity that he bubbled up within him, must’ve been something with this new form. He wasn’t sure but his mind was preoccupied, so he filed it for later. Currently, he wanted to know who this strange man was and what he was doing. He wasn’t being hurt and nothing bad was happening to him so he felt that he could afford having a one track mind at the moment. He stayed low to the ground but inched closer to the stranger, staying wary.

Once Tyr was just out of the stranger’s reach, he hesitantly raised his head to try and see what was in the man’s lap. It was a box, he was spinning it so the colors would change. Tyr hadn’t seen one of those before.

“Hey there,” the man said, startling Tyr away despite the calm tone. The man put the cube next to himself and turned slightly to face him with an open hand out, palm up.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle ya there.” Tyr tried to move away from the hand, tail whipping behind him, but the leash prevented him from going as far as he wanted. It had gotten more tangled rather than less by him moving around.

The man tried to get closer to Tyr, moving slowly and staying seated on the ground. He wasn’t been threatening or trying to scare Tyr, Tyr was aware that it would probably be okay but he felt the fear claw its way up his throat. He didn’t want to be touched if it meant possible pain.

The man stopped moving closer as he heard Tyr whimper and limp slightly. The stranger just noticed the leash around Tyr’s leg. The stranger sat up slightly and looked back at Tyr’s face, seeing the slightly off expression.

“Ah… Do you need some help? I promise I won’t do anything else.” Tyr didn’t move or make a sound to answer the question, just slowly laid down on the grass and hid his tangled leg behind both his tail and head. He watched the man step closer and Tyr curled up slightly more, closing his eyes slowly.

Tyr didn’t expect a gentle hand to pet his forehead like one would with a horse.

“See? It’s alright. I’m not gonna hurt cha, okay?” The man hadn’t said anything until Tyr had pressed into the hand enough to notice. “I’m gonna help untangle ya now. Is that alright?”

Tyr only opened his eyes then, looking at the man and starting to wonder again. What was this nice person’s name?

Tyr watched the stranger move to his side, watching him the whole time. Tyr set his head on the grass and moved his tail out of the way, slow and hesitant. Tyr continued to do not much more than watch as his leg was untangled, being touched as little as the man could help. There was a lot of muttering happening. Tyr didn’t pay attention much to the sounds, focused more on the sights and making sure he wouldn’t get hurt again. He didn’t want to get hurt. He didn’t like it when he got hurt.

“It’ll be okay. I’m sticking around for a while. It’s gonna be okay.” The stranger spoke to Tyr only after getting the leash off his leg, looking at him as one might look at someone or something misshapen or broken. The man’s face had pity for Tyr.

Tyr got up and placed his now free paw on the ground, visibly relaxing somewhat. He had all his feet and could run away if he wanted to and the leash was gone. Tyr stretched and let the rumble in his throat out, feeling okay again.

“That must’ve been doin’ somethin’ bad if you’re purrin’ now. Glad to know I helped.” The man’s voice brought Tyr out of his thoughts and back to him. A purr? Only cats purred he thought and he was no cat.

“Hopefully they’ll treat ya better. If you keep acting like an abused creature than the funding will go down. That would be bad since that’d mean you’d have to go through worse stuff because there won’t be money. That wouldn't be a good thing now would it?” Tyr stayed still and looked at the mountains, noticing the glow behind them. The sun was coming up? How nice.

The stranger looked at the mountains as well, laughing a bit. “The sunrise isn’t for another hour there bud, maybe go get some sleep, tests tomorrow. Even though you still need some time….” the man let his voice to trail off, grabbing Tyr’s attention. The man just waved his hand a bit, the universal sign of “come here” and Tyr did. He was still slow and hesitant but pushed his head into the stranger’s hand, liking how the pets from earlier felt. He could afford to let himself enjoy something small like this, the man promised it would be okay. Tyr didn’t fully trust him but this stranger was all the Division had given him. He didn’t want to be alone.

“Go get some sleep,” the man said with a soft voice, “and I’ll try and convince them to do the easier stuff for a while. You can’t get better from nothing but fear. They should know that by now.”

Tyr just let out a quiet mewl, getting a few pets before being lead to lay down on the carpet. Tyr huffed a bit, watching the man leave the door with a wave. He didn’t want to be left alone. There was too much empty space.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why did I do this to Tyr? I honestly have no idea but oh well, he's skeletal now. Next chapter will be less... bad. :')


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At least things get better? It's still a little bit too much for Tyr.  
> Be wary? but this chapter should be much better than the last one.  
> :/

Tyr didn’t like waking up with electricity. It had happened twice in two days and he did not want it to be routine.

He was sore as he was led into the building, head and tail both low. He was barely paying attention to where he was being taken, much less what they were saying. The nice man from last night was missing but he promised an easier test day. He hoped the stranger was able to make it nicer, he wanted to sleep and not deal with the Division. They always did something that hurt, both physically and mentally.

Tyr almost fell over when the group stopped suddenly, sitting down and whining quietly. He looked up at where they were and laid with his head on his front paws, getting as low to the ground as he could.

The entrance was much taller than himself and the doors were tinted so he couldn’t see through it. There was an air about the door that made his unfamiliar form whimper quietly.

One of the people holding the leash commented on how unlike a human Tyr was acting. Tyr stared straight at them, watching them step back slightly and grow silent. Tyr was both scared and hungry, he hadn’t eaten anything since after he’d first changed. The people around him were starting to realize that.

One of the temporary handlers got to Tyr’s level, her long hair covering her face as she did. She had a smile that didn’t feel real to the people her back was turned to.

“It’s okay, just going to play a little game, okay? Let’s go. Come on,” her voice was trying to be honest but Tyr could hear the wavering in her words. She had hesitated too long to even start speaking after opening her mouth. Tyr whimpered again and curled up slightly, getting looks from Division members working nearby. He didn’t care.

“Come on. Get up, please. We need to be on time.” Tyr curled up more,

“Just use the collar.” Another voice caught the girl’s attention.

“I don’t want him to be mad at me. If he gets out-”

“It won’t. The boss men said so.”

“They were wrong a couple of weeks ago though,” said a new person, putting their arms up defensively over the girl.

“They were weren’t they?” The second person took a step back to think about it and added, “They thought the  **Contain** would’ve been enough but it was barely able to keep the watchers alive.”

“Yeah, what means they’re right about this one too? If I get fired, I have less chance getting eaten by this thing.” The girl pointed a rather aggressive finger at Tyr, unknowingly preventing herself from getting off the list of people Tyr wanted to see dead. She just had the tone that she didn’t care about anyone other than herself. That was not a good thing for both Tyr himself and the Division.

“Well, whatever. Let’s just get it in.” The person who suggested using the collar stepped closer to Tyr, having to jump back as Tyr growled quietly. He wasn’t having any of this. The third person stepped forward and swiftly bapped the side of Tyr’s head, making him jump up with a step back. The other two people watched and slowly moved towards the goal, pulling at the leash and all three letting out a sigh of relief as Tyr followed, head lower than earlier and tail between his legs.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

It was dark. And cold. And confusing.

Tyr didn’t know if the sound in the back of his skull was the ringing or the last echos of him crying earlier when they scratched off bits of bone from different places on him. It hurt. Still.

He didn’t know where he was, how he was, or what he was. Two of those were easier to figure out. He had no way to figure out what he was despite being something living and breathing and thinking about it. It was the most confusing thing that had happened to him. He was pretty sure. It was getting harder to be sure though, his mind was foggy and sometimes things felt like it was floating. He wasn’t sure that was how this was supposed to work but he couldn’t tell the Division about his problem. Unless…

Could he change back? Could he go back to needing only two legs? How would he do that if he could?

He shifted slightly, sitting up and feeling the top of the room. He let out a low whimper, laying down again with his tail around himself. The room was too small and felt both hot and cold at the same time.

He jumped as he heard a door open, the silence breaking with a crash. There were footsteps and then a hand suddenly on the side of his head as the door shut again. The silence filled the room as Tyr tried to figure out what was happening before he heard a quiet voice. He would’ve moved away from the hand but it felt safe, different than the other hands with warmth and sharp objects. This hand was cold, thinner, and shaky. It was empty and held nothing. The voice was muttering apologies as Tyr paid attention, calming down before the blindfold was taken off by two of those thin and cold hands.

Tyr blinked and pawed at where the blindfold had been, whining quietly as he tried to rub off the discomfort. The hands came back, or at least one of them did. A gentle pet to Tyr’s muzzle reminded him of the other being in the cramped room with him.

He hesitantly looked at this other being and stayed quiet, eye sockets widening. What had the Division done to find someone else made of bone?

She had a nametag on a lab coat tied around her shoulders like a cape. Tyr couldn't make out the small letters but he didn’t mind at the moment, looking down and resting his head on his front paws. He whined quietly even as the pets continued, her expression held anger and something gentler. Tyr didn’t know what was directed where but he knew that this wouldn't last long. People left him or hurt him or both.

“I’m sorry you had to go through this… I wish I was there when they forced this upon you, I know it was scary and it probably hurt, didn’t it?” Her voice was soft and asked for forgiveness. She didn’t do anything wrong though, why was she apologizing?

“I’ll help you get through this okay? You already are doing much better than a few days ago. Isn’t that nice?” Tyr still didn’t respond to her, she already knew everything somehow anyway.

“When they let you out again, in a few more hours, I’m gonna help you change into something more familiar than you are right now, okay? No more tests for today, you can rest now. It’s okay.”

Tyr whined quietly and nuzzled closer to her slightly, head on her lap. He could feel how cold she was and the occasional rub on his muzzle felt nice. He didn’t want to be here anymore. He didn’t like living like he was.

“I’ll stay here. I won’t go anywhere until you wake up. It’s okay. It’s okay.”

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr woke up almost the same way he’d fallen asleep. He saw the blindfold off to the side and felt the presence of the bone-lab-coat-lady next to him. She felt different to him but didn’t think of it until he shifted. A smaller of whatever he was was next to him, head on his back.

She woke up shortly after he did, shifted out of sleep when he moved. She looked at him and gave what he assumed was a small smile. Then he heard her voice in the same way the head of the Division would, in Tyr’s head.

“ _ Did you have a nice nap? This room is dull isn’t it? _ ” Tyr whined quietly, how was she doing that and what was happening.

“ _ Ah… sorry. Forgot you’ve still got a lot to learn. This is the easiest part. _ ” She shifted to face him and trilled at his expression. “ _ It’s not that odd. You just aren’t used to it. _

“ _ The first thing is what we’re doing right now. We’re just having a one-sided conversation. You can do this in either form but it’s easier to do it in  _ **_Four Form_ ** _. All you have to do is think at who you want to talk to. It’s just about that simple. It only works with other skeletons though so be careful. Do you want to try real quick? _ ”

Tyr paused and looked at his paws, there were people who lived like this? Their whole lives as nothing but bone? As a skeleton? He decided to give it a try, this was how his life seemed to be heading anyway.

“ _ Just say ‘hello’ to see if you can okay? It’s alright if you can’t get it yet. _ ” Tyr closed his eye sockets and thought out to this other skeleton like he’d been told.

“ _... h… hello? _ ” Tyr jumped as the other nodded and trilled again. That hadn’t been her voice. Did he do it?

“ _ Just like that! Congrats, you can talk without talking. _ ” She seemed impressed but Tyr dismissed it as fake. Why would she be impressed with him? Then he realized there was definitely no way she could be proud of him as he watched her change. The clothes she was wearing before they slept came back as she fit the shape they were designed for.

“ _ How did you-? _ ” Tyr stepped back a bit, startled by the sudden change.

“I’ll teach you okay? It’s just easier to get around with only one  **Four Form** . You can still talk to me though, as we’ve just done. It’ll be okay. I’ll be here with you and maybe you can meet everyone else who lives like this. Okay?”

Tyr nodded and whined quietly looking at the floor again. He pawed at his face again, shifting around a bit. He could feel her hands before he noticed the open door.

“It’s going to be cold and bright, just stay calm and stay with me, okay?” Tyr looked at her, squinting from the backlight. He got up slowly and pressed his forehead on her shoulder. She rubbed the sides of his head with a gentleness he hadn't had been given in… years.

“It’s okay. I’m right here.  _ Okay? _ ” Tyr heard the way the voice changed and whined quietly.

“ _ What if they… hurt me again? _ ” He could hear his real voice in it now, higher than what it had been when he was human but normal.

“Then I’ll be there after. I can’t be there during tests but I can promise you that I will never turn on you. Okay?”

Tyr’s expression ended the conversation. He couldn’t believe her but she knew that.

“Alright, let’s go. One step at a time,” she said out loud with a hint of the tenderness from earlier buried under something more professional. But her  **Thought Voice** was just as kind as ever. “ _ You can keep your muzzle against my back if you want, they can’t make you move away. _ ”

As she turned to walk out at a pace Tyr could keep up with, he tried to look around but it was too bright. The room had only been lit by his runes, a light that was dim and seemed nonexistent in the light of the lights in the lab he’d been led to.

The air felt different with him going out. People were watching him still but this time there was less fear and more of other things. Amazement, shock, and even a little fear for his skeletal companion. Tyr wasn’t sure he liked this any better than everyone being deathly afraid of him when he was being led in.

“ _ You’re alright, they’re just lower level members. They don’t have any clue what we are. It’s alright. _ ”

Normally, a voice in your head is a bad thing but it was her voice and it was encouraging him to do the right thing. He needed to focus more on taking the next step than those people around him. Even if the scene was quite the sight. Two boney creatures walking around like a human walking their dog? It had to be something to tell their families.

Tyr shoved his head closer to the form in front of him, getting a hand on his cheek and another urge to stay calm, they were almost there. Tyr whined quieter than when in the room. The chill that had grown on his spine hurt. Why did being cold hurt?

“ _ Once we get outside, we’ll try shifting. It’s easier to stay warm when bipedal. We’re almost there, just a little longer. _ ”

Tyr shivered as the outside air hit his bare bones, pulling a whimper out against his will. He tried looking around again and paused, looking up at the night sky and catching the sight of a shooting star. He assumed that was what it was. He had rarely gotten to see the stars before. He sat back on his haunches to take a moment to just watch, not sure if he’ll ever get to see this kind of view again.

“Tyr? Would you like to come in? They changed the air flow so it would be warmer.”

“ _...yeah, okay, _ ” Tyr slowly got back up and gave the stars a final glance before walking the rest of the way to the little home he had now. Stepping in and laying down, he realized that it did feel warmer. It was nicer than outside.

“ _ Do you really think I can change? The Division didn’t ruin everything? _ ” He looked at her as he spoke, not quite realizing how much like himself he sounded.

“I know you can. Not right away but after some time, you will. It’s going to hurt the first few times, I wish you didn’t have to experience any more pain but it’s necessary for this. Okay?”

Tyr nodded after some long hesitation, thinking about it as much as his hazy mind could. He looked at her and whined quietly.

“ _ Why does it hurt? How much does it? _ ” Tyr wanted to know but her reaction confused him.

“We’ll find out together I suppose. Do you want to try it once right now?” She laughed and covered her mouth with her hand. Tyr whined a bit at this but agreed.

“ _ I want to get back… _ ” Tyr pawed at the ground, hesitating. “ _ I… this isn’t… comfortable… _ ”

“I know, I’m sorry they changed your race but we can’t put the human back over your bones. I don’t even know how they did this and it probably does feel all kinds of wrong. I’m sorry, skeletons aren’t the best for not growing up into. Let’s just… try? to work this out, together. Okay?” She had one hand under his muzzle and the other rubbing his cheek. She was truly upset about this, he could see the sparkle of tears in her eye sockets.

Tyr nodded enough that she could notice but not much more than that.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

The day had clean air and a bright sunset, it was a very lovely day.

Tyr curled up in the corner of his little home with the remains of the day’s tests. He was shivering despite the warmth of everything around him. The only thing he could smell or taste was blood. He didn’t have blood as he’d found out a couple of days back, the same time he discovered how uncomfortable it was to have his limbs detached. It was weird that was a thing but Ashia said it was normal for skeletons, they didn’t have anything other than magic keeping their bones together so they could come apart without disintegrating.

That was how skeletons died apparently, they turned to dust after they ran out of magic. The way that worked bothered Tyr some but it explained a lot. Since skeletons dusted, there wouldn't be any remains to show that they had existed as long as Ashia said they had. Honestly, a lot of things were starting to make more sense the more Tyr was able to explore the hidden culture of skeletons. They had games to help kids figure out how to do things and some kids were born bipedal and others in  **Four Form** and it wasn’t anything to worry about. There were few different types of magic in the skeleton pool,  **healers** and  **levitation** wielders made up the majority.

Ashia had told him that she wanted him to be able to come to the hidden town for skeletons, Donebid she said they called it. She said it was nice and felt homely. Tyr wanted to see it sometime.

Someone came into the building, startling Tyr into a tighter ball. He needed to pay more attention to his surroundings.

“Tyr? The headman wants to see you standing outside.” The voice was fearful but harsh, not staying around long enough to make sure Tyr actually did what he was told. Tyr barely looked up soon enough to see who it had been, much less got up before the head of the Division and Ashia had gotten outside. She was talking to the Division head, almost trying to convince him of something.

Tyr got to where he needed to be just in time, hugging his arms to his chest and looking at the head’s chin. He refused to look any higher anymore, not since he’d been able to swap forms. Ashia was talking about the lack of a break for Tyr, something about skeletons not being able to continue as hard as humans or something. Tyr could barely pay attention, haze in his mind taking over as he felt a chill down his bare spine. They didn’t give him a shirt, just a pair of worn pants. Tyr had decided that it was a blessing enough to have that much.

“3-27, look at me.” The head of the Division’s voice was commanding, harsh and having a silent threat if it wasn’t obeyed. Tyr hated it more than almost anything else but he listened and obeyed, fearing the consequences of not.

Tyr was on the floor before he realized what had happened, a hand instinctively going to his cheek. Something was wet under his hand.

“Never make eye contact. How many times have I told you this!” The voice got louder and Tyr tried to hold back tears. Why did skeletons cry? Where did the tears come from?

That train of thought was kicked out of his mind that got hazier as there was a sudden pain in his gut. He got kicked, but why?

“S-sir, if I may-”

“Shut up boney. I don’t need you turning it against us. We’ve already given you too much freedom with it. Don’t abuse your position or I’ll have you replaced. Get up 3-27. Go back to your hole,” and as Tyr walked off, he heard the head mutter, “Look at that. Pathetic. I’ve wasted too much money on this for it to go out now.”

Tyr forced himself to ignore everything else after that, limping from the poorly taken care of gash in his leg from the tests earlier. He wished he could remember things better, maybe he could've healed himself a little by now. The bruised ribs and fractured arms bones burned every time they moved even if it was only to find some way to sit more comfortably.

He curled back up where he’d been before, next to the second heater in the open room. The box fan was nice when he was  **Four Form** but when he was smaller like he was now, it was useless.

The ground heater was partially covered with something softer than its hard plastic to keep him from accidentally burning himself again. It hurt enough the first time that he didn’t mind that it didn’t give off as much heat as it once did. It was more comfortable to sleep against it like this anyways. They didn’t bother him while sleeping anymore either. People kept getting hurt when trying to wake him up for a test and they didn’t like testing his  **Four Form** anyway. They still would but only begrudgingly and more painfully on Tyr’s part.

As Tyr was wedging himself further in the corner, he felt the now familiar green of Ashia’ magic trying to soothe his injuries. It helped only like pain relief medicine.

“ _ I’m sorry they did this today, I was hoping they’d put it off a few more days until you had more control over swapping… _ ” Her voice was just as tender as usual. It hadn’t changed at all since they first talked.

“ _ Don’t blame yourself… you tried and that’s enough. _ ” Tyr’s voices had taken two different paths. His thought voice had fear laced with hopelessness. His talking voice had become hard yet quiet, used only when needed and rarely had anything other than faint fear in it when it wasn’t empty.

The Division had succeeded in one thing; they had completely broken Tyr’s spirit and he barely cared to live.

Ashia tried to bring Tyr’s hopes up but it fell flat as quickly as Tyr’s smile became forgotten. Nothing she did ever really brought his hopes up and his memory was getting worse from it. He stopped having “Memory Attacks” that took him out of his world because of everything the Division was doing to him. His body and mind were almost always low on energy to stand on some days, forget trying to learn about this person who may not even be real and trying to hide in his thoughts. It was pointless and took energy he needed to try and keep living. He remembered Ashia once telling him that if a skeleton losing the will to live completely that they’ll die. Maybe death wouldn't be too bad.

Ashia kept trying to  **heal** Tyr even if it didn’t do much anymore. She knew he wasn’t trying to keep up anymore. She talked to the people in charge of Tyr about giving him some days off to help him not only recover from the tests that were picking up in both pace and intensity but also to help him have a chance to regain some hope for the future but she was brushed off. She could feel him giving up and knew he had days left at the rate he was falling yet she was unable to do anything about it. Unless…

“ _ I’ll be back, okay? The next test isn’t for another few hours so you can try to get some sleep. Please don’t give up yet… _ ” Ashia hesitated for a moment and watched Tyr curl up more, not responding if he even was awake. She ran off, leaving the Division headquarters.

~  ~ ~  ~ ~ ~  ~ ~ ~ ~  ~

Tyr didn’t hear Ashia leave or come back, half asleep and not really caring until she tried to get him to stand. He heard her saying something but he wasn’t sure what there was to talk about. He didn’t feel like practicing today either. He whimpered quietly and tried to reach for his corner. He wanted to sleep and he wanted to lay down and not do anything and relax in the silence.

“ _ Come one, Tyr, we have to go now before they find us. Everything is set up, you just need to take a few steps, okay? Just a little bit of walking and then you can sleep. Yeah, just like that, almost there… _ ” Ashia’s voice was distant yet right there, in his head.

He took another step and stumbled even though he was being supported by Ashia so much. His leg hurt so much and his arm was burning. There was no way he’d ever stop hurting until he had no more life.

“ _ I need you to stay calm and remember my name, okay? These people will take you somewhere warm and soft and where you can sleep. You need to be good, I’ll see you soon. I promise. _ ” Ashia seemed to be further away now as Tyr felt multiple thin hands grab onto him before he was  **Lifted** and set onto some animal’s back. It didn’t make much sense, what kind of test was this?

He tried to look around but his eyes were too tired to consider letting him even slightly. If it was something he needed to be conscious of, they’d yell at him until he was awake anyway. They’d done it before. They’d do it again probably. He didn’t care. Maybe he’d turn to dust right on the table. That would be nice.

He whined quietly as he felt the thing under him move like it was running somewhere cold and damp. A pair of hands rubbed his spine, a shiver went out from where the fingers touched all the way to his toes. That felt weird but he didn’t not like it, it reminded him of the time they tried to take a bone sample from a rib and accidentally broke it next to his spine. That had been a nice long nap. It hurt a lot and had been a while ago but it was enough to call it a nice memory. The look of fear on their face when Tyr had started screaming even under all the anesthesia was almost worth the intense white-hot pain. It hurt thinking about it. The rib was still missing and Ashia said it would never come back.

He felt the warmth before he saw the faint glow despite his closed eye sockets. He coughed a bit at the sudden temperature change and found enough strength to shift slightly, the hands on his back exerting only enough force to keep him where he was. He only shifted more. It was starting to hurt, the force on his back kept moving around and kept brushing against the bruises and scrapes on his bones. He kept shifting, starting to whine a bit before he began coughing. His physical body was struggling to stay calm and contained and small and quiet. He started hearing voices he didn’t recognize and feelings he couldn’t differentiate anymore. He couldn’t help the whimpering and the fear in his near silent cries for it to stop.

It had all built up too fast though. Tyr was too exhausted in every sense of the word for him to do anything. He was out cold before anything could be done.


End file.
